Chrome

This week there’s word that Android - if not the web as well - will be getting a full makeover by Google in the icon department. Evidence suggests that the icons being added to the world of Android and the web will be flatter, a bit more well organized, and sized relative to one another.

Google has rolled out the latest Chrome Beta update for Android, and with it comes some new features, perhaps most notable among them being an option to undo a tab close. As with previous updates, there are a couple bugs in tow, but those who are willing to deal with them can update now.

Keyboards on the screen of your computer are only really helpful when you have no physical keyboard in front of you. Instead of hunting and pecking on a display, it’s (almost) always faster to type on a physical keyboard - and it wouldn’t make sense to type on a screen when your keyboard is closer. So why has Google added an onscreen keyboard for Chrome OS?

Supposing you’re aware of the Heartbleed bug - which has been patched in many locations around the web already - you know that it’s a massive deal in the internet security universe. It’s left massive portions of the web open for hacking for two whole years, and it’s only being patched by most of the web this week. As luck would have it, there’s something you can do on your end this week as well to keep safe as an average web user.

Supposing you’ve been frustrated in the past with Google I/O and the registration process which always leaves developers wanting without a quick trigger-finger, today may make you happy. Google has just made clear their intent to implement an April 7-9th (OR April 8th-10th, there seems to be some confusion at the moment between presentations) registration period. Inside that period you may register on the Google I/O registration site once, and applicants will be randomly selected after the 9th.

Google is rolling out Now to the desktop version of Chrome. Via Twitter, the Chrome team announced that over the next several weeks, they will be introducing Google Now to your Chrome browser on Windows, Mac, and Chrome OS. Long in the works, it seems the time for true cross-platform contextual awareness is upon us.

With the newest generation of Chromebooks they’ve got prepped for the public, Samsung brings on their Galaxy styling to the web-based OS’s hardware. With the Samsung Chromebook 2 13.3" model, we’re seeing a 13.3-inch 1920 x 1080 LED display that’s surprisingly bright - and sharp, of course. This machine will be offered in gray and will be appearing in the public in April of 2014.

If you've become fond of the convenience that comes with going hands-free (and you're a Chrome browser user), Google's latest announcement is right up your alley: hands-free voice search in Chrome. It is a simple yet notable update that has the potential to make users' daily activities far more efficient.

It’s just 126 days until Google I/O 2014, the company’s annual developers conference that’ll once again be taking place at Moscone West (aka the Moscone Center) in San Francisco, California. This event will be largely the same as in past years with a similar setup and subject matter - as far as we know - while the sign-up process will be entirely different.

When it comes to optimizing web browsers, most of the firms behind popular browsers like Firefox and Chrome are always out to optimize the browsers for the best possible performance. Google has announced a tweak to the Chrome browser this week that will make web apps run faster on the browser than they did before.

Following the Chromebox for Meetings offering announced by Google earlier in the day, HP has offered some further details on its Chromebox. There has yet to be any details released in terms of the pricing, however HP has said the Chromebox will be arriving in the spring. Essentially, you are looking at a small desktop computer running Chrome OS, however Google and HP have said this will be compatible with Chromebox for Meetings.

Browser hijacking is an annoying sort of malicious activity that often spawns from downloading toolbars or freeware of some sort, the end result being a messed up browser and trouble regaining control. Late last year, Chrome scored a "Reset browser settings" button, something Google has decided to take up a notch for Windows users.